A 10-year-old boy died in Delhi’s Narela after a handheld firecracker caused a deep chest injury on Diwali evening, while the discovery of packaging without a certification number or QR code has raised questions about enforcement of rules governing so-called green fireworks.
Rishi Garg was lighting a flower-pot firecracker outside his home in northwest Delhi when the device injured him, according to a report by The Times of India. Relatives took him to a hospital, where doctors declared him dead. Police said they received information at about 10.50pm on November 8 from a hospital that a child had been brought dead with burn injuries caused by a firecracker.
The firecracker cover, seen outside the family’s home a day after the incident, reportedly carried large Chinese lettering and a small logo stating “green fireworks”. The packaging did not have a certification number or QR code, according to the report. These details could not, from the available information, establish whether the product was legally manufactured, certified or sold in compliance with Delhi’s restrictions.
Rishi was the youngest of three brothers. His brother Dhruv alleged that the boy was still breathing when the family reached the hospital and that doctors did not provide adequate attention. Dhruv also alleged that hospital staff and police officers prevented the family from taking Rishi to another hospital. The hospital had not responded to The Times of India at the time of publication.
The family further alleged that Rishi’s body was sent to another hospital in Jahangirpuri for a post-mortem examination without informing them. Police said the body had been sent for post-mortem. The available report does not include the findings of that examination or any statement confirming the family’s allegations about the hospital’s handling of the case.
The death has also exposed the gap between restrictions on firecrackers and what reaches neighbourhood markets. A friend of Rishi’s father questioned how an allegedly uncertified product was available if only approved green fireworks were permitted for sale. The question points to the enforcement chain involving manufacturers, distributors, retailers and local authorities, although the report does not identify the seller or confirm the product’s regulatory status.
The incident adds a serious safety dimension to the annual debate over firecracker use in Delhi, where restrictions are intended to limit pollution and reduce risks associated with explosive and incendiary products. In this case, however, the immediate facts remain the child’s fatal injury, the police-recorded receipt of the body for post-mortem and the reported absence of certification details on the packaging. Further findings from the post-mortem and any police or hospital inquiry will determine the next official steps.
